Ice Sculpture Festival in St Petersburg

Everyone knows about the typical Russian winter — Cold and lots of snow. But the last few years the weather kept surprising us with unusually mild winter months in the European territory of Russia. This year is not an exception. But even though it is only — 5°C outside the spirit of miracles is felt in the city.

One of the most long-expected events of the winter season is the traditional ice sculpture festival on the grounds of Peter and Paul Fortress. Sculptors from Russia, Ukraine and other countries came together to create a fairy-tale in the open air. For this purpose 950 tons of arctic ice were brought from the northern city of Murmansk.

The festival organizers keep secret the exact details of the festival but at least we know that this time it will be dedicated to heroes of Russian fairy-tales. The symbol of this year is the Little Humpbacked Horse — a cheerful horse that helps the Russian hero Ivan, the main character of a story by Ershov, in his adventures.

Apart from seeing the sculptures there will be plenty of other things to do. For example, on the shore of the Kronwerk canal children will be able to test a modern slide which does not depend on weather and, as a result, does not need additional ice resurfacing. Concerts and fairs will be operating during the New Year holidays. Moreover, for the next winter celebrations, such as Valentine’s Day or Maslenitsa (pancake festival), new sculptures will be made. The festival will be operating until the beginning of March.